Archive for July, 2009

I’m not sure if it’s the recession, the resurfacing of round sunglasses, or if just I wasn’t disaffected enough the last time I saw it, but I was way too into Reality Bites when it played at my park the other week. If not for the smoldering looks from Ethan Hawke and Winona Ryder, then definitely for the floral sun dresses and green wedge sandals worn by sweetly sarcastic Vickie Miner (Janeane Garofalo circa 1994).
The best part: All of the roughly 500 people watching emitted a collective groan following this gem from Winona’s character, Lelaina, “I was really going to be somebody by the time I was 23.”
It was Troy’s (Ethan’s) sweet response, though, that led me to make this loving polyvore set that night (click here for details on the goods), “Honey, all you have to be by the time you’re 23 is yourself.”

But what good are Vickie-inspired dresses and glasses without some shoes scored on eBay?

Leave it to Calvin Klein to help us impress with some metallic shine and glamorous accents. These eye-catching 2 ½” heels are shiny enough to act as a miniature torch to light up your steps for the night.

The beveled octagon shapes across the strap ramp up the shine factor, and the super-rich leather is enough to get excited about in itself. Party night, date night or just for dance night with your BFF, this is the way to knock their socks off.

The square stiletto heel makes these a little more forgiving than your standard skinny stiletto, and the adjustable ankle strap offers plenty of support on the dance floor. Besides, you need a little more shine in your closet this season (these might also work well as a last-minute makeup mirror).

Pair these with a silver metallic envelope clutch, some silver dangling earrings and a glitzy bracelet for the complete look. Talk about party-ready…these are ready for the party, the after-party, and any time you want to add a stylish, red carpet-inspired look to your ensemble.

Recently, New York Magazine posted the following fashion missive: “Bensimon, maker of our favorite French sneakers, has added a new style for summer and one local store currently has them in stock.” For shoppers in N.Y. City, “Tani, on the Upper West Side, has just received a shipment of the new ballerina-style sneakers, which feature a strap that loosely ties at the ankle … The rubber sole gives traction on wet days and the canvas molds nicely to feet after a few wears.”

Blogger Trend Doll writes, “Many of our favorite designers have created their version of how a canvas sneaker should be. But who wants to pay a grip…right? Try hitting your local discount spots for canvas skippies…they work just as good!”

Play sneakers by Comme des Garcons and Converse

Blogger 2 Fresh 4 Yall has also spotted the trend, though keeps it high end, writing, “Comme des Garçons has released a fair share of sneakers in the past, especially collaboratively, however they are now about to introduce the very 1st PLAY sneaker.” The unisex high and low-tops are a collaboration with Converse and come in black or white with a red heart motif.

Add this one to the “Everything old is new again” category: Keds (the company that’s been there forever, with those good-girl skimmers-parlayed-into not-so-goody-two-shoes retro-patterned wedges) now offers up a Design Your Own feature. Choose from a lace up, a slip on or a mini slip on and then mix and match colors and prints on each section of the upper. But it doesn’t take an individualized shoe to rock a unique look in Keds. Need proof? Look no farther than the casual-chic model on the Web site’s main page.

And that is exactly why I have grown to super-fandom of Donald J. Pliner’s footwear. This is a man who has been quoted saying “When the feet are uncomfortable, so is the mind, so is the body, so is the soul.”

ideeli.com

This is something I can relate to, and why I was so excited morning to see his line is having a sale event at ideeli – right now these Idraw pewter sandals are marked down from $350 to $139.

This is a fabulous way for me to have the platform sandals I crave, sans the broken ankle I’m trying my best to avoid. All in all, not a bad shopping day!

Alas dear Shoetubers, what sounds like a line from a Dr. Seuss book, is something far more grim I’m afraid. This morning my mother came to my house to dog sit, and I almost keeled over when I saw what was on her feet. There, right before my eyes, was my own mother wearing–horror of horrors–CROCS WITH SOCKS! Yes readers, my own flesh and blood, my dear mother who wears Prada and Tory Burch: what happened?! She tried to justify the look: something about sweating and comfort. I don’t know, I couldn’t really listen, for as far as I’m concerned there are just no excuses for any footwear that foul crossing my threshold. Ever.

Now, I’m not a Croc-hater: I actually own two pairs (ballet flats and mary janes). I find them to be quite perfect for suitable occasions such as gardening, kayaking, and Bonnaroo. But with socks?!?!?!?! How, why, what, WHY????? I don’t even know what to say at this point. This incident will surely be just cause for therapy down the road: I still shudder just thinking about it.

And it gets worse. I was too shocked this morning to take a picture, so I Googled “crocs and socks” (secretly hoping to find nothing), but NO–there were tons! I don’t care if you are the President; it’s just not acceptable. At least Michelle Obama is just wearing Crocs, no socks, yet…

Does everyone remember that scene from Confessions of a Shopaholic when Rebecca has to do her first assignment as a finance columnist and resorts to Google-ing the word “finance”?

Well, this weekend, I saw my very first soccer match, and I think I may have been emulating my green-scarved silver-screen-twin.

I had a pretty jet-set weekend–Nutrilite, a nutritional supplement brand, flew me and a few other journalists out to Long Beach to meet with their nutritionists and tour their facility. It was super fun, and entirely whirlwind – I was there for less than two days!–but it was capped off with the most whirlwind part of all.

See, Nutrilite is the brand sponsor of AC Milan, one of the biggest things to happen to soccer since Pele – and that night, they were playing LA Galaxy. We were invited to not only attend the game – but have a meet and greet with the team, and then watch them play from a VIP Hospitality Suite.

So, here’s the problem – I may be an ass-kicking take-no-prisoners blogger when it comes to beauty and fashion, but I don’t know anything about soccer. Anything at all.

And I was about to sit and chat with one of the most famous teams in the world…who just happened to be a bunch of incredibly well-fit sexy Italian men. Le sigh.

And so I did the only thing I could do. I Googled.

By doing so, I learned the basics: You don’t touch the ball. And you kick it. It’s sort of like football. But not. However, it’s actually called football (or futball?) in many places. Oh, and the players are supposed to be the fittest men in the world.

The only thing left to decide was…what to wear.

I know that sports-minded people tend to be sort of casual – but this is a team sponsored by Dolce & Gabbana – and they are European – I obviously couldn’t appear to meet them in flip flops.

I ended up going with my Betsey Johnson Honest Cork Wedges. With their layers of studded fringe over the vamp with tasseled bow, they are frisky and flirty – exactly what I wanted to convey to said sexy fit Italian men. But they are also California casual- exactly what I would imagine one may wear to a summer evening soccer match.

The game ended up tied – I hear, an accomplishment for any American team vs. a European one, and the team, while very nice, actually didn’t speak much English, so they had no idea how clueless I was. I think I did catch a few nodding at my toes though…

Summer is here in full force and the awards and premieres have begun to slow down a little bit as Hollywood gets ready for their summer break we have one of the last major awards shows of the 2009 season- the ESPY’S (The Oscar’s of the sporting world). Sometimes I think athletes are so used to wearing their sport specific gear that they just don’t do so well in street clothes and to add to that we aren’t used to it. (Who immediately pictures Venus Williams in an evening gown?) I wouldn’t consider this show the pinnacle of fabulous fashion but a few Hollywood favorites showed up to celebrate their athletic counterparts. Demi Moore was my highlight in her fiery Zac Posen dress and black Brian Atwood peep-toes, Jaime Pressly wore strappy Dior sandals and Olivia Wilde came in Sergio Rossi. The common denominator here? Back to Basic Black.